10-Story Detective, September 1941 — page 99: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

DESIGN FOR A HEADSTONE TSD don’t Hynes show up with the dough ?” Starkey pulled a cheap dollar watch from his pocket, glanced at it. “About fifteen minutes,” he said. “Then we can blow. What’s eating you, Rabbit?” Hallock squinted his eyes against the upward swirl of smoke. “I don’t like it, is all.” “What don’t you like?” “Killing this dame.” Starkey’s eyes narrowed. “Her hus- band’s paying us ten grand for the job, ain’t he?” “Yeah, sure,” Hallock answered, “but this kind of work doesn’t fit up our alley. We knock off some cheap hood and the cops’ll let it go without raising too much of a smell. They’re glad to get him out of the way. But you cheek out some dame from a ritzy family with lots of lettuce and they’ll beat their brains out finding us.” Starkey cracked his thick knuckles. “Take it easy, Rabbit. We’re in the clear. Didn’t Hynes arrange the whole setup? Didn’t he give the cops a wrong steer on our descriptions? And if the worst comes to worst and they pick us up, he’ll fail to identify us. Otherwise they’d stretch his neck right along with ours. What more do you want?” “This. Why’n hell didn’t he pay us and let us hit right out for the Coast?” Laughter rumbled deep in Starkey’s throat. “Beeause he’s a banker, that’s why. They’re a hard lot, Rabbit. They like to see what they’re getting before they pay for it. Maybe this Hynes has a little blonde stashed away in some love nest. Or maybe he was just tired of the old girl. I don’t know. Anyway he gives us the job and a thousand bucks to bind the bargain. He prom- ises to meet us out here in this shack with another ten grand after every- thing is finished. Maybe he was afraid if he paid in advance we’d lam out with the money and not murder the old girl.” Halleck took the cigarette out of his mouth and rolled it between his finger- tips. “I still don’t like it, Benny. Some- © times these guys crack under the * strain. The cops get suspicious and OL start asking questions and first thing you know he’ll become panicky and spill his guts. He’ll talk and they’ll pick us up. I don’t like it.” Starkey shook his head, still smil- ing. “No, they won’t, Rabbit.” He spoke with such confident con- viction that Hallock’s eyes jerked up and shot him an inquisitive look. “What do you mean, Benny ?” The gun that suddenly appeared in Starkey’s broad palm seemed to come from nowhere. He patted the dull blue barrel, and said in slow, measured words: “Just this. Hynes ain’t ever going to squeal. He won’t even be able to open his mouth.” Hallock’s lips crawled into a wide grin. “I get it, Benny. We’re gonna take the ten G’s and then shut him up —for good.” Starkey was beaming in the Slory of Hallock’s admiration. ‘“That’s right. Or maybe you’d like to pump one into him.” ‘Sure, sure,’’ Rabbit-ears Hallock said eagerly. “You just keep talking to him, Benny, and I’!l drift around be- hind him. His brains’ll be leaking be- fore he ever knows what hit him.” Scarcely had the two men completed arrangements when they heard the purr of a motor a short distance away. It choked short, endowing the silence to chirping crickets. Seconds later twigs crackled under the tread of heavy feet. Ben Starkey replaced the gun and said: “Here he comes.” Hallock grinned. ‘‘Come on, sucker,” he breathed and opened the door. ENNOX HYNES carried the port- ly distinguished air of a man of affairs. Square-faced, chiseled fea- tures, he was impeccably attired. He came in, beaming. “Kverything went smooth as sy- rup,” he said. “Well, I guess you boys can leave town now.’ Hallock remarked dryly: “We haven’t any carfare.” They all laughed at that. Hynes drew out a heavy manila en- Conn (C NOOK CO